Apparatus for substantially simultaneously forming multiple articles having different properties

ABSTRACT

An apparatus is provided that includes a mold that includes a first cavity defining a toothbrush body, a first injection unit in fluid communication with the first cavity and a second cavity, and a second injection unit also in fluid communication with the first cavity. An apparatus is also provided that includes a mold that includes a first cavity defining a toothbrush body, a second cavity defining a toothbrush body, where the first cavity and the second cavity define substantially identical toothbrush bodies, a first injection unit in fluid communication with the first cavity and a second injection unit incapable of being in fluid communication with the second cavity.

This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 09/067,328, filed Apr.28, 1998 now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to forming articles, and in particular to formingtoothbrush bodies.

Toothbrushes generally include a toothbrush body that includes a handleportion and a head portion, and tufts of bristles located at or near thehead portion.

Toothbrush bodies are generally made by injection molding machines.These toothbrush bodies often consist of plastic and include multiplecomponents. The different components may differ in nature, color,texture, density, and hardness. For example, toothbrush bodies mayinclude a relatively hard plastic base component and a coloredrubberized gripping component.

After the toothbrush bodies are manufactured they are automaticallyremoved from the molding machine and deposited onto a cooling conveyor.The cooling conveyor transports the toothbrush bodies to a bin. Thebodies are then manually transported to a bristle tufting machine wherethey receive tufts of bristles and are formed into toothbrushes.

The tufting operation generally involves manually grabbing handfuls ofdifferently colored toothbrush bodies so as to provide a mixture ofdifferently colored toothbrush bodies to a hopper. A conveyor removesthe toothbrush bodies randomly from the hopper and orients the bodies sothat the head portion of the body is available to receive the tufts ofbristles from the bristle tufting machine. The bristle tufting machineautomatically staples tufts of bristles into the head of each toothbrushbody to form a toothbrush. The finished toothbrushes are automaticallydeposited into a tray which is manually transported to a packagingmachine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the invention features an apparatus that includes a moldthat includes a first cavity defining a toothbrush body, a firstinjection unit in fluid communication with the first cavity, and asecond injection unit also in fluid communication with the first cavity.

In one embodiment, the apparatus further Includes a second cavitydefining a second toothbrush body. The second cavity is in fluidcommunication with the first injection unit. In another embodiment, theapparatus further includes a third cavity defining a third toothbrushbody. The third cavity is in fluid communication with the secondinjection unit. Preferably the first and second injection units are inalternate fluid communication with the first cavity.

In other embodiments, the mold further includes a fourth cavity defininga fourth toothbrush body, and the apparatus further includes a thirdinjection unit. The third injection unit is in fluid communication withthe third cavity and the fourth cavity. Preferably the second and thirdinjection units are in alternate fluid communication with the thirdcavity.

The injection units are capable of substantially simultaneouslyinjecting a first molding compound having a first property into thesecond cavity, injecting a second molding compound having a secondproperty into the third cavity, and injecting either the first or thesecond molding compound into the first cavity to form toothbrush bodieshaving different properties.

In another embodiment, the apparatus further includes a gating device influid communication with the first and second injection units. Thegating device is capable of directing the flow of molding compound tothe first cavity such that either the first injection unit is in fluidcommunication with the first cavity or the second injection unit is influid communication with the first cavity.

In another embodiment, the apparatus further includes a) a second moldthat includes a cavity defining a toothbrush body, b) a third injectionunit in fluid communication with the second mold cavity, and c) anautomated mechanical transfer for transferring a toothbrush body fromthe cavity of the second mold to the cavity of the first mold.

In another aspect, the invention features an apparatus that includes amold that includes a first cavity defining a toothbrush body, and asecond cavity defining a toothbrush body. The first cavity and thesecond cavity define substantially identical toothbrush bodies. Theapparatus also includes a first injection unit in fluid communicationwith the first cavity, and a second injection unit in fluidcommunication with the second cavity. In one embodiment, the injectionunits are capable of injecting a first molding compound having a firstproperty into the first cavity to form a toothbrush body having a firstproperty, and injecting a second molding compound having a secondproperty into the second cavity to form a toothbrush body having asecond property. Preferably the injection units are capable ofsubstantially simultaneously injecting the molding compounds into thecavities.

In another aspect, the invention features an apparatus for substantiallysimultaneously molding a plurality of substantially similar toothbrushbodies such that at least one of the toothbrush bodies has a propertythat is different from another of the toothbrush bodies.

In other aspects, the invention features a process for substantiallysimultaneously forming toothbrush bodies having different properties inone mold. The process includes: a) selecting a first injection unit froma group of at least two injection units in fluid communication with afirst mold cavity, b) injecting a first molding compound from the firstinjection unit into the first cavity to form a toothbrush body having afirst property, and c) injecting a second molding compound, differentfrom the first molding compound, into a second cavity of the mold toform a toothbrush body having a second property. In one embodiment, thestep of injecting a first molding compound, and the step of injecting asecond molding compound occur substantially simultaneously. Preferablythe first toothbrush body includes a first color and the secondtoothbrush body includes a second color. The second color is differentfrom the first color.

In another embodiment, the process for forming a toothbrush bodyincludes a) injecting a first molding compound into a first mold cavityto form a first toothbrush body, b) transferring the first toothbrushbody to a second mold cavity, the second mold cavity defining a secondtoothbrush body, c) selecting a first injection unit from a group of atleast two injection units in fluid communication with the second moldcavity, and d) injecting a second molding compound from the firstinjection unit into the second mold cavity to form a second toothbrushbody.

In one embodiment, the process for forming toothbrush bodies havingdifferent properties includes a) injecting a first molding compound intoa plurality of first mold cavities to form a plurality of firsttoothbrush bodies, b) transferring the first toothbrush bodies to aplurality of second mold cavities, c) selecting a first injection unitfrom a group of at least two injection units in fluid communication withone of the second mold cavities, d) injecting a second molding compoundfrom the first injection unit into the second mold cavity to form asecond toothbrush body having a first property; and e) injecting a thirdmolding compound into another of the second mold cavities to form asecond toothbrush body having a second property.

In another aspect, the invention features a process for substantiallysimultaneously forming toothbrush bodies having different properties inone mold, where the mold includes a first cavity defining a toothbrushbody and a second cavity defining a toothbrush body and the first cavityand the second cavity define substantially similar toothbrush bodies.The process includes (a) injecting a first molding compound into thefirst cavity of the mold to form a toothbrush body having a firstproperty, and (b) injecting a second molding compound, different fromthe first molding compound, into the second cavity of the mold to form atoothbrush body having a second property. Preferably the first propertyis a first color and the second property is a second color.

In other aspects, the invention features an apparatus that includes a) amold that includes a first cavity defining an article; b) a firstinjection unit in fluid communication with the first cavity; and c) asecond injection unit also in fluid communication with the first cavity.In other embodiments, the apparatus includes (a) a mold that includes afirst cavity defining an article, and a second cavity defining anarticle, the first cavity and the second cavity define substantiallysimilar articles; (b) a first injection unit in fluid communication withthe first cavity; and (c) a second injection unit in fluid communicationwith the second cavity.

In another aspect the invention features a process for substantiallysimultaneously forming articles having different properties in one mold.The process includes a) selecting a first injection unit from a group ofat least two injection units in fluid communication with a first moldcavity; b) injecting a first molding compound from the first injectionunit into the first cavity to form an article having a first property;and (c) injecting a second molding compound, different from the firstmolding compound, into a second cavity of the mold to form an articlehaving a second property.

In another embodiment, the process for forming articles having differentproperties includes a) injecting a first molding compound into aplurality of first mold cavities to form a plurality of first articles;b) transferring said first articles to a plurality of second moldcavities; c) selecting a first injection unit from a group of at leasttwo injection units in fluid communication with one of said second moldcavities; d) injecting a second molding compound from the firstinjection unit into one of said second mold cavities to form a secondarticle having a second property; and e) injecting a third moldingcompound into another of said second mold cavities to form a secondarticle having a third property.

As used herein, the term “toothbrush body” is intended to refer to anyportion of the toothbrush body, e.g., the entire toothbrush bodyincluding the head portion and the handle portion; the head portion; thehandle portion; portions of the head portion; and portions of the handleportion.

The invention permits the manufacture of articles (e.g., toothbrushbodies) having a predetermined variety of properties (e.g., differentcolors) from a single mold in a single molding cycle. This in turnallows control over the subsequent manufacture and packaging oftoothbrushes such that single packages of multiple toothbrushes can bemanufactured where each package contains a predetermined multiple oftoothbrushes having different properties (e.g., a predetermined numberof red, yellow or blue handled toothbrushes in a single package). Theinvention also permits the selection of a predetermined variety ofarticles to achieve an array of articles having a variety of properties.The present invention thus avoids the need for manual intervention orassistance in the mixing of toothbrushes to achieve a desired mixture oftoothbrushes having different properties in a single package. Theapparatus also provides control over the color mixture in each packageof toothbrushes shipped to a customer.

The arrangement of the injection units in the molding unit alsoadvantageously permits variation in injection timing which allowsmolding compounds having differing cure rates to be injected into moldcavities at different times so that cure is completed substantiallysimultaneously for each molding compound. This allows a single moldcycle to accommodate a variety of molding compounds.

The apparatus of the present invention is also capable of producing anordered array of toothbrush bodies and maintaining the relative order ofthe toothbrush bodies throughout the manufacturing process. Maintenanceof the ordered array also simultaneously maintains the orientation ofthe toothbrush bodies, which facilitates tufting and packagingprocesses.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following description of the preferred embodiments thereof, and fromthe claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a toothbrush body.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of one embodiment of the toothbrushmanufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross section view taken along line A-A′ of the injectionmolding unit of the apparatus FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a top view of one embodiment of the conveyor of the apparatusof FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the automated mechanical transfer and theconveyors of the apparatus of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of one end of another embodiment of theconveyor of FIG. 2.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of another embodiment of the toothbrushmanufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a view taken in cross section along line B-B′ of the moldingunit of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged top view of one part of the molding unit of FIG.7.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged, rotated top view of a portion of the mold ofFIG. 7.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the packaging unit ofthe apparatus of FIG. 7.

FIG. 12 is a side view of one embodiment of the packaging unit of FIG.11.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the packagingunit of the apparatus of FIG. 7.

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of another embodiment of the manufacturingapparatus of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention features an apparatus and method for the automatedmanufacture of a plurality of articles. The apparatus is capable ofpermitting the selective manufacture of a plurality of articles havingpre-selected properties in a single molding cycle. The invention alsofeatures an apparatus that is capable of simultaneous manufacture of aplurality of articles that differ from each other in at least oneproperty (e.g., color, composition, texture, density, and hardness). Theinvention is particularly useful for toothbrush manufacturing and isdescribed below with reference to toothbrushes, however, it is to beunderstood that the invention is applicable to any molded article.

Referring to FIG. 1, toothbrush body 12 includes handle portion 2 andhead portion 4. Toothbrush body 12 can further include a base member 6,e.g., a portion made from a relatively harder, more rigid plastic suchas polypropylene, and a gripping member 8, e.g., a portion made from arelatively rubbery material such as, e.g., styrene-butadiene-styrenetriblock copolymer (commercially available under the trade designationKraton from Shell Chemical Co.). Multiple component toothbrush bodiesare described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,256,048 (Jacobs et al.).

The apparatus for manufacturing toothbrushes having toothbrush bodies ofdifferent properties will now be described using color as the propertythat differs. It is intended that the property that differs could be atleast one of a variety of properties including, e.g., color,composition, texture, density, hardness, and various combinationsthereof.

Referring to FIG. 2, toothbrush manufacturing apparatus 10 includes ahorizontally mounted injection molding unit 100 that forms toothbrushbodies 12, e.g., the relatively more rubbery gripping portion of amulti-component toothbrush handle. An automated mechanical transfer 300removes the molded bodies 12 from molding unit 100 and loads them ontoconveyor 400, which transports the molded bodies to tufter 200. Tufter200 secures tufts of bristles to toothbrush body 12 to form the finishedtoothbrush. A second automated mechanical transfer 310 automaticallypicks the finished toothbrush and places it on conveyor 480 which movesthe toothbrush to packaging unit 500. Packaging unit 500 encases thefinished toothbrush in a packaging material, e.g., a blister pack, or abox and cellophane, to form a packaged toothbrush. The packagedtoothbrush can then be transported (e.g., by automated transport orconveyor) to a second packaging machine (not shown) where a numberindividually packaged toothbrushes are packaged together to form asecond package.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, horizontally mounted injection molding unit100 includes a stationary mold part 14 and a mobile mold part 16. Mobilemold part 16 travels along a horizontal path between a closed positionin which mold parts 16, 14 are in sealing contact with each other, andan open position, in which mobile mold part 16 and stationary mold part14 are separated by a distance to allow automated mechanical transfer300 access to the formed bodies 12.

In the closed position, mold parts 14 and 16 define a first set 14 a ofmold cavities A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H, each of which defines a portion11 a of a toothbrush body 12, e.g., the rubberized gripper portion ofthe toothbrush body. The portion of each mold cavity A-H located on moldpart 14 is shown in FIG. 3. The mold cavities can define the entiretoothbrush body, i.e., the handle portion and the head portion, or aportion of the toothbrush body.

Molding unit 100 also includes injection units 18 a-18 d, which are influid communication with mold cavities A-H. Injection units 18 a-18 dare capable of injecting liquid molding compound into mold cavities A-H.

Each injection unit includes a reservoir 20 a-20 d for holding a moldingcompound, and conduits 22 a-22 h through which a molding compound canpass from a reservoir to a mold cavity. Preferably each reservoircontains a molding compound having a different color such that each moldcycle produces toothbrush bodies of different colors; preferably eachmold cycle produces at least four differently colored toothbrush bodies,e.g., two blue, two red, two green, and two yellow toothbrush bodies.

Referring to FIG. 3,.reservoir 20 a of injection unit 18 a is connectedto cavities A and B via conduits 22 a and 22 b respectively. Similarly,reservoir 20 b is connected to cavities B, C, D and E via conduits 22b-22 e respectively. Reservoir 20 c is connected to cavities E-G viaconduits 22 e and 22 g, and reservoir 20 d is connected to cavities Gand H via conduits 22 g and 22 h respectively. Injection unit 18 bshares conduit 22 b with injection unit 18 a and conduit 22 c withinjection unit 18 c. Injection units 18 c and 18 d share conduit 22 f.

Fluid communication between the injection units and the mold cavitiescan be controlled by gating manifolds 24 a-24 f which open and close thefluid communication between reservoirs 20 a-20 b, and cavities B, E andG. Gating manifolds 24 a and 24 b, for example, can be placed in an openposition or a closed position to regulate the fluid communicationbetween f reservoirs 20 a and 20 b and cavity B. When gating manifold 24a is in an open position, reservoir 20 a is in fluid communication withcavity B such that a molding compound in reservoir 20 a can travelthrough conduit 22 b to cavity B. When gating manifold 24 a is in theopen position, manifold 24 b can be in the open or closed position tomaintain or close communication between reservoir 20 b and cavity B.When manifold 24 b is in the closed position, molding compound isprevented from flowing from reservoir 20 b to cavity B.

In an alternate embodiment, a single manifold can be used to opencommunication between an injection unit and a cavity and simultaneouslyclose communication between another injection unit and the same cavityand vice versa. Referring to cavity B, for example, a single manifoldcan open communication between injection unit 18 a and cavity B andsimultaneously close communication between injection unit 18b and cavityB.

Gating manifolds 24 a-24 f allow a number of toothbrush bodies having avariety of different colors to be manufactured simultaneously. Byopening and closing the various manifolds, the number and variety oftoothbrush bodies can be altered. In addition, by including injectionunits having more than one common conduit leading to more than onecommon cavity, the degrees of freedom, in terms of available colorvariety, are increased. For example, referring to FIG. 3, the moldingcompound in reservoir 20 b can be transferred to two, three or fourcavities depending upon the configuration of gating manifolds 24 b and24 c. The molding compound in reservoir 20 c can be transferred to one,two or three cavities and the molding compounds in reservoirs 20 a and20 d can be transferred to one or two cavities.

Although the molding unit is described as having eight mold cavities andfour injection units, it is contemplated that any number of moldingcavities and injection units could be placed in fluid communication witheach other in various permutations. In addition, gating devices can bepositioned as desired to control the flow of molding compound to thecavities.

The injection molding unit can further include a second set 14 b of moldcavities A′-H′, each of which defines a second portion 1 b of toothbrushbody 12, e.g., the relatively hard, more rigid plastic (e.g.,polypropylene) base portion of the toothbrush body. The second portion 1b of toothbrush body 12 defined by mold cavities A′-H′is different(e.g., in shape, dimension and combinations thereof) from that portion 1a of toothbrush body 12 defined by cavities A-H. Injection unit 26 is influid communication with mold cavities A′-H′and is capable of injectingmolding compound into mold cavities A′-H′to form second portion 1 b oftoothbrush body 12. Preferably portion 11 b of toothbrush body 12 isformed first and then portion 11 b is transferred (e.g., by automatedmechanical transfer) to the first set 14 a of mold cavities A-H (e.g.,portion 11 b of toothbrush body formed in cavity A′ is transferred tocavity A) where colored molding compound is injected into cavities A-Hto form a dual component toothbrush body, and where processing continuesas described above.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4, automated mechanical transfer 300 assists inremoving toothbrush bodies 12 from the mold cavities (e.g., moldcavities A-H) and transferring toothbrush bodies 12 to conveyor 400.Automated mechanical transfer 300 preferably removes each toothbrushbody 12 a-12 h simultaneously from injection molding unit 100 andtransfers the bodies to a first position 42 on conveyor 400. Morepreferably, automated mechanical transfer 300 simultaneously picks theentire array 34 of toothbrush bodies 12 a-12 h and places the array 34onto conveyor 400 in the same order in which the bodies were formed.Automated mechanical transfer 300 is also capable of orienting theindividual toothbrush bodies 12, or the entire array 34 of toothbrushbodies 12 a-12 h, such that the head portions of the toothbrush bodies12 are in proper orientation for transfer to subsequent operations(e.g., bristle tufting machine 200 or packaging).

Referring to FIGS. 4-6, conveyor 400 includes a first conveyor 410,e.g., a nested cooling conveyor, for receiving and cooling toothbrushbodies 12, and a second conveyor 420, e.g., a walking beam conveyor, forsequentially feeding toothbrush bodies 12 to tufter 200. First conveyor410 moves toothbrush bodies 12 to second conveyor 420 while maintainingtoothbrush bodies 12 in the order in which they were placed onto theconveyor by automated mechanical transfer 300. Toothbrush bodies 12 arethen transferred to the second conveyor 420 from first conveyor 410. Thetransfer from first conveyor 410 to second conveyor 420 can occur in anumber of ways including, e.g., first conveyor 410 feeding toothbrushbodies directly onto second conveyor 420 arranged perpendicularly tofirst conveyor 410, as shown in FIG. 4; automated mechanical transfer300 picking the toothbrush bodies, e.g., the array 34 of toothbrushbodies 12 a-12 h, from first conveyor 410 and placing the toothbrushbodies onto second conveyor 420, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6; andcombinations thereof. Automated mechanical transfer 300 is capable oforienting the toothbrush bodies throughout the manufacturing process.

Tufter 200, includes a plurality of tuft insertion devices capable ofinserting a plurality of tufts of bristles into the head portion of thetoothbrush body. Tufter 200 receives an oriented toothbrush body 12, andinserts a plurality of tufts of bristles into the head portion 4 of thetoothbrush body 12 to form a finished toothbrush 30. Tufter 200 can alsotrim the bristles and end rounding the bristle filaments of head portion4.

Referring to FIG. 2, second automated mechanical transfer 310automatically picks toothbrushes 30 from tufter 200 and places them onthird conveyor 480 where they move to packaging machine 500. Preferablysecond automated mechanical transfer 310 maintains the orientation andorder of the toothbrushes such that control over the color variety ismaintained. As a result, the color mixture set at the molding operationcan be maintained throughout the toothbrush manufacturing process up toand including the step of packaging the toothbrushes. Packaging machine500 packages each individual toothbrush into a package (e.g., a blisterpack), and can also be configured to package a plurality of toothbrushesinto a single package or a plurality of the individually packagedtoothbrushes into a second package.

Apparatus 10 can also include a variety of additional processing unitsincluding, e.g., a second packaging machine for packaging theindividually packaged toothbrushes into a second package such that thesecond package includes a variety of differently colored individuallypackaged toothbrushes.

A second apparatus 90 for manufacturing toothbrushes having differentcolored bodies, is shown in FIGS. 7-12. Features that are in common withapparatus 10 shown in FIGS. 2-6 are designated with the same referencenumerals. Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, apparatus 90 includes verticallymounted injection molding unit 600, which forms toothbrush bodies, andautomated mechanical transfer 300, which removes the molded bodies frommolding unit 600 and transfers them to a cooling station 700. Automatedmechanical transfer 300 then selects toothbrush bodies 12 from coolingstation 700 so as to create an array of differently colored toothbrushbodies, e.g., an array of five toothbrush bodies that includes blue,green, red, purple, and yellow toothbrush bodies. The automatedmechanical transfer can be programmed to select any number of toothbrushbodies in a variety of color combinations. Automated mechanical transfer300 then places the selected array onto conveyor 710, which feedsindividual toothbrush bodies 12 to tufter 200. After tufter 200 securestufts of bristles to the toothbrush body to form finished toothbrush 30,a second automated mechanical transfer 310 picks finished toothbrush 30and places it on second conveyor 712. Second conveyor 712 movestoothbrush 30 to packaging machine 800 where the toothbrush is packaged.Optionally, third automated mechanical transfer 320 selectively providestoothbrushes 30 to packaging machine 800.

Vertically mounted injection molding unit 600 includes a stationary moldpart 614 and a mobile mold part 616, as shown in FIGS. 8-10. Mold parts614, 616 are arranged such that mobile mold part 616 travels along avertical path between an open position, (as shown in FIG. 8) in whichthe mold parts 614, 616 are separated by a distance to allow automatedmechanical transfer 300 access to the formed bodies 12, and a closedposition in which mold parts 614, 616 are in sealing contact with eachother. Referring to FIG. 10, mold part 614 includes a portion of a firstset 614 a of mold cavities A-T, each of which defines a portion 11 a ofa toothbrush body. Each of five injection units 618 a-e is in fluidcommunication with four of the twenty cavities 2A-2T, such that eachinjection unit 618 a-e is capable of injecting a molding compound intofour of the twenty cavities.

Referring to FIG. 10, injection unit 618 a is in fluid communicationwith mold cavities 2A-2D; injection unit 618 b is in fluid communicationwith mold cavities 2I-2L; injection unit 618 c is in fluid communicationwith mold cavities 2Q-2T; injection unit 618 d is in fluid communicationwith mold cavities 2M-2P; and injection unit 618 e is in fluidcommunication with mold cavities 2E-2H.

Preferably each injection unit injects a different molding compound intoits corresponding cavities such that the toothbrush bodies formed fromeach of the different molding compounds exhibit different properties,e.g., color.

Injection molding unit 600 can further include a second set 614 b ofmold cavities 2A′-2H′, each of which defines a second portion 11 b of atoothbrush body 12, as shown in FIG. 10. A sixth injection unit 619, influid communication with cavities 2A′-2T′, is capable of injectingmolding compound into each mold cavity 2A′-2T′. The molding compoundinjected by the sixth injection unit is preferably of a material that,upon molding, exhibits a property that is distinct from that of theportions of the toothbrush body formed in mold cavities 2A-2T. Portions11 b of toothbrush bodies 12 formed in mold cavities 2A′-2T′ are thentransferred to first set 614 a of mold cavities 2A-2T where processingcontinues as described above.

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, one embodiment of the packaging operationis shown in which automated mechanical transfer 300 picks a blister pack107 and places it in position 111 a of turret 111 where it remains readyto receive finished toothbrush 30. Automated mechanical transfer 300then returns to tufter 200 and retrieves a finished toothbrush 30.Automated mechanical transfer 300 then transfers finished toothbrush toblister pack 107 waiting at index position 111 a on turret 111, andplaces finished toothbrush 30 into blister pack 107. Blister pack 107,filled with finished toothbrush 30, is then indexed to full position 111b during which time automated mechanical transfer 300 retrieves a cover109, e.g., a film or card. Automated mechanical transfer 300 thenreturns to the filled blister pack 107 at index position 111 b andplaces cover 109 onto the filled blister pack 107. Automatic mechanicaltransfer 300 then transfers the blister pack assembly, shown at indexposition 111 c, to sealing unit 900, where the blister pack assembly issealed to form a package around the toothbrush. Automated mechanicaltransfer 300 waits for the completion of the sealing operation and thentransfers the sealed package to a transport mechanism where the sealedpackage can undergo further processing, e.g., additional packaging orstorage. Automated mechanical transfer 300 then returns to the readyposition where it waits to start the process again with a newly formedset of injection molded toothbrush bodies. The automated mechanicaltransfer and packaging apparatus of FIGS. 11 and 12 can also beincorporated into apparatus 10.

Referring to FIG. 13, another embodiment of packaging operation isshown. Packaging unit 802 forms blister packs 127 at position 122 a androtates formed blister pack 127 to position 122 b. A second automatedtransfer 320 picks toothbrush 30 and places toothbrush 30 into blisterpack 127. Packaging unit 802 rotates the filled blister pack to position122 c, applies a cover 129 to filled blister pack 127, and seals theassembly to form a packaged toothbrush 131. If necessary, packaging unit802 separates e.g., by punching or cutting, blister pack 127 from otherblister packs with which it may be associated.

Referring to FIG. 14, another automated process 128 of the invention isshown in which first automated mechanical transfer 114 removes moldedarticles 140 from injection molding unit 112, and transports articles140 to cooling conveyor 116 or cooling station 118. Optionally,automated mechanical transfer 114 selects articles based upon apredetermined criteria (e.g., color) and provides the selected articles(e.g., five articles each having a different color) in the form of anarray to packaging machine 130, or to conveyor 116, which moves articles140 to packaging machine 130, such that articles having predeterminedproperties can be packaged substantially simultaneously. A secondautomated mechanical transfer 142 can assist in transferring articles140 from conveyor 116 to blister pack 136 at first position 138 b onpackaging machine 130. A third automated mechanical transfer 144 thentransfers packaged articles 142 to second conveyor 134 and/or secondpackaging machine 136 for additional packaging.

Other embodiments are within the claims. For example, the automatedprocesses of the invention can include a hot tufting operation in whichtufts of bristles are secured to the body of the toothbrush by hotwelding the bristle material to the toothbrush body. Examples of hottufting operations are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,424 (Boucherie).The bristles can also be secured to the toothbrush body during themolding operation as disclosed, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,458,400(Meyer), U.S. Pat. No. 5,609,890 (Boucherie), and U.S. Pat. No.5,474,366 (Strutt et al.).

In addition, the apparatus can include one or more automated mechanicaltransfers for moving the toothbrush bodies and toothbrushes throughoutthe various stages of the processes disclosed.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus comprising: (a) a first moldcomprising first and second cavities defining toothbrush bodies; (b) afirst injection unit in fluid communication with said first and secondcavities; and (c) a second injection unit also in fluid communicationwith said first cavity but incapable of being in fluid communicationwith said second cavity.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said firstmold further comprises a third cavity defining a toothbrush body, saidthird cavity being in fluid communication with said second injectionunit.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said apparatus furthercomprises a gating device such that said first and second injectionunits are in alternate fluid communication with said first cavity. 4.The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said first mold further comprises afourth cavity defining a toothbrush body, and wherein said apparatusfurther comprises a third injection unit, said third injection unitbeing in fluid communication with said third cavity and said fourthcavity.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said apparatus furthercomprises a gating device such that said second and third injectionunits are in alternate fluid communication with said third cavity. 6.The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said injection units are capable ofsubstantially simultaneously injecting a first molding compound having afirst property into said second cavity, injecting a second moldingcompound having a second property into said third cavity, and injectingeither said first or said second molding compound into said first cavityto form toothbrush bodies having different properties.
 7. The apparatusof claims 4, further comprising a second mold comprising a second moldcavity defining a toothbrush body; a fourth injection unit in fluidcommunication with said second mold cavity; and an automated mechanicaltransfer for transferring a toothbrush body from said second mold cavityto said first cavity of said first mold.
 8. An apparatus comprising: (a)a mold comprising a first cavity defining an article, a second cavitydefining an article, and a third cavity defining an article; (b) a firstinjection unit in fluid communication with said first and secondcavities; and (c) a second injection unit in fluid communication withsaid first and third cavities but incapable of being in fluidcommunication with said second cavity.
 9. The apparatus of claim 8,wherein said apparatus further comprises a gating device such that saidfirst and second injection units are in alternate fluid communicationwith said first cavity.
 10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein saidapparatus further comprises a gating device such that said first andsaid second injection units are in alternate fluid communication withsaid third cavity.
 11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said injectionunits are capable of substantially simultaneously injecting a firstmolding compound having a first property into said second cavity,injecting a second molding compound having a second property into saidthird cavity, and injecting either said first or said second moldingcompound into said first cavity to form articles having differentproperties.
 12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a gatingdevice in fluid communication with said first and second injectionunits, said gating device capable of directing the flow of moldingcompound to said first cavity such that either said first injection unitis in fluid communication with said first cavity or said secondinjection unit is in fluid communication with said first cavity.